1. Field of the Invention
Generally, this invention is directed towards warning common vehicles, pedestrians near traffic signals, and people near radios of approaching emergency vehicles. More specifically, this invention uses a radio signal transmitter that activates a special radio receiver affixed near traffic signals to audibly and visually warn vehicles in close proximity to the traffic signals of an approaching emergency vehicle. Additionally, a radio signal transmitter is also adapted to the emergency vehicle to broadcast an emergency siren signal over radio receivers in close proximity to the emergency vehicle.
Time is usually a critical factor during emergency situations involving accident victims, people needing medical treatment after being involved in some sort of accident. Accident victims needing emergency treatment are forced to wait for an ambulance to arrive at the seen of an accident and transport the patient to a hospital for proper treatment. There are many case every day where patients die on the way to hospitals due delays in the time it takes an emergency vehicle to arrive at the accident scene and transport a patient to the hospital. If the time it takes for an emergency vehicle to arrive at an accident scene and transport accident victims to a hospital for treatment can be reduced, many more lives each year could be saved.
Many times the emergency vehicles are slowed down at street intersections because of other vehicles are not being aware of approaching emergency vehicles and not staying clear of the intersection. This causes the emergency vehicles to slow down and delay the emergency reaction times of the emergency vehicles.
Another problem noticed for emergency vehicles are the passengers of vehicle not being aware of approaching emergency vehicles due to the radio volume being turned up too high on their radio head phones or in the interior space of their vehicle. This scenario has been accused of causing many accidents to occur involving emergency vehicles with non-emergency vehicles.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Several approaches have been provided for the warning of approaching emergency vehicles, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,235,329, "A combination to detect the proximity of an emergency vehicle including a transmitter in the emergency vehicle and a receiver in another vehicle, the receiver actuating an alarm such as a blinking light upon the reception of a transmission from an emergency vehicle."
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,187,373, "An optical signal emitter assembly emits light pulses which are received by an optical traffic preemption system detector. The optical signal emitter assembly employs a honeycomb element positioned in front of a light source which collimates light emitted by the optical signal emitter assembly. The optical signal emitter assembly is convertible from a stand-alone unit containing power supply circuity, timing circuitry, and a light source in a single housing, to a unit wherein the light source can be mounted independently from a housing containing the power supply circuitry and the timing circuitry."
In the art taught by U.S. Pat. No. 4,896,153, a "System to control and temporally adapt semaphoric regulating, consisting of one first receiving radioelectric equipment (F), equipped with nondirectional aerial, and provided, on roads, buildings, etc., in number suitable for requirement of monitored crossings, to receive and decode signals on a given frequency; one transmitting radioelectric equipment (I), equipped with directional aerial (L), in the same number as that of said receiving radioelectric equipments, suitable for retransmitting said properly reencoded signals, said receiving and transmitting equipment forming decentralized monitoring sites (4) for controls and transit; one second receiving radioelectric equipment (5), 3 with nondirectional aerial (M), provided near the usual switching exchange (7) of semaphoric signals (3), able to decode the signal received on a given frequency; and of one main transmitter (2), connected to aerial means (D), and provided on rescue vehicle (1); between said second receiving radioelectric equipment and usual switching exchange being provided an intelligent interface (6)."
While some of the prior art may contain some similarities relating to the present invention, none of them teach, suggest or include all of the advantages and unique features of a system of warning of an approaching emergency vehicle as the invention disclosed herein.
For the foregoing reasons, there is a need for a system that will warn pedestrians and vehicles particularly at intersections of approaching emergency vehicles such that many more lives can be saved, and the number of accidents between emergency vehicles, and non-emergency vehicles will be reduced.